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Thanks for pointing this out. I have never used a phone or a mobile device to access the website, so I have no experience on this issue.
However, I know that there are many who use mobile devices to access the website. It would be great if they can comment. Is this a big problem or can one get around this issue easily?
By the way, just to make it clear, one does not need to login to read any of the material, including the posts at the discussion forum. One needs to login only to ask a question at the forum or to reply to a question at the forum.
Here is the link to the discussion forum, where details can be found:
ForumsWelcome to the forum!
It is difficult to recommend exactly which posts to read first, because each person is different and has one’s own unique background.
The following post could be useful:
User’s Guide to Pure Dhamma WebsiteThe following one could be a good resource too:
Pure Dhamma – SitemapPlease feel free to ask questions as you proceed. May be we can recommend some posts based on your questions.
“Perhaps I should start, instead of trying to meditate on abstract concepts like “good” and “love” (I’ve always had trouble with abstractions like math and emotion), and instead try to do sitting meditation sessions while slowly feeling and pinching my belly fat etc and thinking about all the health issues that accompany THIS, not just what I HAVE but what I COULD like diabetes and heart attacks, both of which (like predisposition towards depression and similar mental illnesses) run in the family from BOTH SIDES…”
Yes. This is the key. The Buddha emphasized that the best way to remove cravings is to see the bad consequences of them:
Assāda, Ādīnava, NissaranaUntil one gets rid of the strong cravings (with determination), it is not even possible to grasp Dhamma concepts, because one’s mind is burdened too much tāpa or heat in the mind).
For example, those who do not see the bad consequences of taking drugs will never be able to comprehend Dhamma, until they get rid of that habit. Excess craving for food is below that but not too far below.
y not said: “I ask this because the Buddha on more than one occasion stated that such-and-such a person has ascended to a particular realm ‘and will attain release from there’.
It is true that the Buddha has made such statements regarding SPECIFIC individuals.
When people asked him “what is the gati, what is the birth of so and so who just died?”, the Buddha may have said, he had attained the Sakadagami stage before dying and that he will born in a deva realm and attain Nibbana from there.
That is because the Buddha can see that for that individual.That does not mean it will happen to any Sakadagami. The general rule is that a Sakadagami will not be born again in the human or lower realms and will be born only once in a deva realm. If he/she does not attain Arahanthood there, he/she will be born in a higher realms(s) and attain Nibbana in the future, without ever coming back to the kama loka.
Actually, the way it is written seems to be OK to me. May be I am missing something?
When you say, “Otherwise, it says “keep doing” the same old bad habit.”
I don’t think I said to keep doing the same old habit.Nimitta is used in two different ways:
One is a “sign” that comes to the mind as a kamma vipaka, especially close to the cuti-patisandhi moment when one is about to grasp a new bhava. That is the one discussed in the post.
The second is actually not in Buddha Dhamma, but was incorporated to Buddha Dhamma in the Visuddhimagga by Buddhaghosa. Hindu yogis did anariya kasina bhavana taking some object (ball of clay, dish of water, a light, etc) as the kasina object. This kasina object is also called a nimitta.
1 user thanked author for this post.
I just came across this old post which could be helpful for you to stay focused on your new plan of action:
How Habits are Formed and Broken – A Scientific ViewGood plan, Eric.
I hope you will have the will power to stick to the plan.Yes. It may be a good idea to switch back and forth between Abhidhamma and Living Dhamma sections. The Living Dhamma section starts with basic concepts, but goes to very deep levels in later subsections.
Hello y not,
I missed the spouse! I may get into trouble with my wife.
It should be parents, spouse, children, siblings, extended family and friends, etc.Of course, this is not a set order. This is actually what I believe the order is for me. For another person, a close friend may come much closer, for example.
So, don’t take this order too seriously. Parents definitely come first, because they are the ones who gave us a chance to be born with a human body. There are billions of human gandhabbas waiting for a suitable womb. Killing a parent is an anantariya kamma and killing any other (except for an Arahant) is not. Of course, killing an Arahant comes under a different category based on Arahant‘s moral standing.
Very impressive!!
You seem to be making good progress in Sinhala. Is it helping with Pali words yet?Hello Donna,
Yes. We have to fulfill our obligations to others while working on our own spiritual development. So, it is always a balance. Things change unexpectedly and we have to do our best accordingly. As we fully well know, this is the anicca nature.Paying debts is a part of making progress too. In this life, we are mostly indebted to our parents, children, extended family and friends, etc in that order. In the next life, it will be different set, where we will pay debts to the next in line.
However, one thing that I have noticed is that when we do our best to fulfill our obligations, things seem to get better over time too. I think you made the right decision to leave the monastery to help your aging Dad. It is a meritorious deed. If you did not do that you could have been stressed out about it.
There is a story in the Tipitaka that I heard from a desana from Waharaka Thero. The parents of a bhikkhu became old and became helpless. The bhikkhu started to share whatever he received in his alms round each day with his parents. Other bhikkhus complained to the Buddha about this action. The Buddha actually praised that bhikkhu and approved his action.
There was also an instant where one bhikkhu became ill and became helpless with other bhikkhus avoiding him. The Buddha himself went there to take care of the bhikkhu and admonished the other bhikkhus of their misbehavior.
So, we should always try to live a balanced life. Things will work out at the end.
Hello Eric,
I am glad to hear that you have made some progress and that you are determined to stick with a plan. Doesn’t it feel good to be in a clean environment? That makes the mind calmer.
You will get more incentive to stick to the plan when you start seeing more results. Remember that progress is slow in the beginning, just like it is hard to get a stalled car moving. But once it picks up some speed, it becomes much easier.
Also, if you like the Abhidhamma section, stick with it and don’t hesitate to ask questions. There is an Abhidhamma forum.
Also, try to cut down on videos and loud music gradually. Even though acquired knowledge can reduce that tendency, it will be much easier if you enforce some discipline. For example, no matter how advanced one is, one will not be able to do any critical thinking in an environment with many distractions.
If you can, try to spend a specified time without those distractions. Try to gradually increase that time.
I am glad that you found them useful, firewns.
If you have any questions on those audios, there is a separate forum to ask questions on them: “Three Marks of Existence Discourses”.
